Swimming-bag.



Patented Nov. 29, 1910 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT L. F. BERRY, OF MILLER PLACE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, OF ONE-THIRD TO FREDERICK W. SGHWER, OF GLEN RIDGE, NEW JERSEY, AND ONE-THIRD TO CARO- LINE 0. BAI-IR, 0F YONKEBS, NEW YORK.

SWIMMING-BAG.

emcee.

particularly those which are made of muslin.

of such fine mesh that when immersed, the water, by reason of capillary attraction,

' serves to seal the bag against escape of the air by which it is distended.

One of the main objects of the invention is to provide an inexpensive bag of this character which can be readily inflated, and which is proof against quick deflation in case of puncture or accidental leakage.

Another object is to provide a swimming bag of this kind which can be worn like a vest, and, if desired, inside of the usual outer clothing, where it is ready for use in case of an emergency.

In carrying out the invention, I divide the bag into several independent compartments which are separately sealed, so that in case of leakage of air from any compartment the others may remain distended. In the preferred form of the invention, one middle set of stitchings divides the bag into two main sections, and each of these main sections is divided by transverse stitchings into several separate compartments. The middle stitchings are so placed as to form this part of the bag into two air conduits, one opening into the compartments on one side 0' the bag, and the other openin into the compartments on the other side of the bag; said compartments being out of communication with one another, and the openings from the conduits into the compartments being so disposed as to conduce to the natural or automatic sealing of the conduits and compartments, so that the bag, when inflated, will remain in that condition for a long time.

A tube of similar material is attached to the upper ends of the conduits for supplying air to all of the compartments, said tube having a mouth-piece at its upper end, and being of suflicient length to enable it to become self-sealing as its walls are pressed Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 29, 1910.

Patented Nov. 29, 1910.

Serial No. 552,222.

{)ogether after the filling of the swimming In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view to illustrate how the swimming bag may be worn beneath the outer garments of the user. Fig. 2 illustrates the method of inflating the swimming bag under water; the level of the water being indicated by a line A. Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic face view of the swimming bag, partly broken away along its middle portion, to illustrate the lines of stitching. Arrows indicate the flow of the air to inflate the bag. Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic or rough view of the swimming bag in one of the forms it may assume when submerged and inflated.

In its preferred form, the swimming bag may comprise two oblong sheets of muslin 1, 2, joined by edge stitching 3 to form the bag; suitable body straps 4: and 5 and buckles 6, 7 being attached to the side edges of the bag, and a neck strap 8 and buckle 9 being attached to the top edge, to enable the swimming bag to be worn as a vest, as seen at Figs. 1 and 2. v

The bag is preferably divided, by a row of stitches 10, which extends from top to bottom about midway between the side edges, into two main sections B and C, which are entirely out of communication with each other, so that leakage in one section will not cause deflation of the other. Said row of stitching 10 forms the middle one of three rows, the outer rows being designated as 11, 12, respectively; and it will be seen that by means of these three rows, a portion of the body of the bag is formed into two contiguous air conduits 13, 14:, extending from top to bottom of the bag.

The sections B and G are subdivided by horizontal or transverse rows of stitching 15, 16, into compartments, of which there are six shown; a pair of upper compartments D, D, a pair of middle compartments E, E and a pair of lower compartments F, F. These compartments are each out of communication with all the others, so that puncture or other leak in any part of the bag may not deflate more than one compartment. The invention is not limited to six of the compartments.

The air conduit 13 opens at 17, 18, 19 into compartments D, E, F, respectively, but

does not open into D, E, F. The other air conduit 14 has openings at 20, 21, 22, into the compartments D E F respectively, but does not open into the compartments 1), E, F. It will thus be seen that the air is supplied to inflate the compartments on one side separately from those on the other side of the main dividing line 10 of the swimming bag.

The openings 17 to 22 are produced by simply making breaks in the lines of stitching 11 and 12, as illustrated; and the openings in one conduit 13 are preferably much out of line with the openings in the other conduit 14, or, in other words, each opening is opposed by the two unbroken lines ot stitching 10, 12, whereby the advantage is gained of using the fully dilated portion ot each compartment to aid in sealing the opening in the opposite compartment; the dilation of each compartment tending to close the opening in the adjacent compartment. In other words, the tendency of the inflated compartments is to collapse the conduits 13, 14 and close the openings 17 to 22, and seal the same; said compartments being sulficiently small to be forced into irregular zigzag or tortuous shape and sealed by the action of the air in inflating the compartments, as indicated roughly at Fig.

The lines of stitching 15, 16 extend from the lines 11, 12 to the sides of the bag; and it will be seen that the upper compartments D, D are preferably the largest, the middle compartments E, E next in size, and the lower compartments F, F the smallest, these last being the least readily filled with 2111, owing to their distance from the source or" inflation.

An inflation tube 23, which, like the bag, may be made of muslin, so as to be sealed by capillary attraction when immersed or wet, is joined at its lower end 2% to the upper ends of the conduits 13, let, so as to supply air to all the compartments on both sides of the bag about simultaneously. The upper end of the tube is provided with a mouthpiece 25. The tube 23 is of such length that it may collapse and be self-sealing, and when made of such length, extends conveniently from the bag, when worn as at Fig. 2, to the mouth of the user.

Variations may be resorted to within the scope of the invention, and portions of the improvements may be used Without others.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, stitching dividing said bag into independent closed compartments and forming a portion of the bag into an air conduit having openings into said compartments, said conduit extending along said compartments and of a size to be collapsed and sealed by the pressure of air in the compartments.

2. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of line mesh, stitching dividing said bag into independent closed compartments ant forming a portion of the bag int-o an air conduit having openings into said compartments, said conduit eX- tending along said compartments and of a size to be collapsed and sealed by the pressure of air in the compartments, and a tube of the described material connected at one end to said air conduit and provided at the other end with a mouth-piece, and of sufficient length to enable it by collapsing to seal the bag.

3. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, a portion of the body of said bag being formed by means of stitching into an air conduit opening into the body of the bag and extending along said body and of a size to be collapsed and sealed by means of the pressure of air in the bag, and a valve tube connected to said conduit.

4;. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wetby virtue of its being made of fine mesh, said bag divided by stitching into independent.

closed compartments, so that when one compartment is punctured the others will not be affected, a portion of said bag also formed by stitching into an air conduit in communication with all of said compartments, said conduit extending along said compartments and of a size to be collapsed and sealed by the pressure of the air in the compartments, and a mouth-piece for said conduit.

5. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, said bag comprising main body portions which are out of communication wit-h each other, each of said main portions divided by stitching into independent compartments, and a portion of each of said main portions being formed by stitching into air conduits having independent openings into the diflerent compartments, said air conduits being contiguous and collapsible by pressure of the air in the compartments,

and a mouth piece communicating with said conduits.

6. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, said bag having three rows of stitching along its middle ortion and also having transverse rows 0 stitching, whereby the bag is divided up into siX independent compartments, said three middle rows of stitching being separated one from another so that two air conduits are formed, and the outer row being interrupted to form open that two air conduits are formed, and the outer row being interrupted to form openings to permit communication between said air conduits and said compartments, said openings in one conduit being out of line with those in the other conduit, and a single air tube of the described material joined to the swimming bag at the upper end of said conduits and having at its end a mouth piece, and of sufiicient length to enable it, by collapsing when wet, to seal the bag.

8. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, may be sealed by capillary attraction, said bag having three rows of stitching along its middle portion and also having transverse rows of stitching, whereby the bag is divided up into six independent compartments, said three middle rows of stitching being separated one from another so that two air conduits are formed, and the outer row being interrupted to form openings to permit communication between said air conduits and said compartments, said openings in one conduit being out of line with those in the other conduit, said transverse rows being so placed as to make the top larger than the middle, and the middle larger than the bottom compartments.

9. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when Wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, and formed with a plurality of independent compartments by means of intersecting rows of stitching, and a mouth piece connected to all the compartments to fill them: said stitching interrupted at certain points to form separate inlets for the compartments, to provide for the self-sealing of iach compartment by the pressure upon the 10. A swimming bag formed of cloth which becomes impervious to air when wet by virtue of its being made of fine mesh, to be worn as a vest and divided by means of intersecting rows of stitching into numerous independent compartments, and having an air-conduit communicating with all of the compartments, and provided with straps for securing it to the body of the wearer; said air conduit extending along said compartments and opening into each thereof and of a size to be collapsed by the pressure of air in the compartments, and a mouthpiece communicating wit-h said compartments.

ROBERT L. F. BERRY.

Witnesses:

S. ERNEST HOPKINS, MAUDE S. HOPKINS. 

